THAT last hour-and-a-half on the BBC’s interactive red button has made up for endless celebrity cartwheels and little grocers telling us “Egg-boiling doesn’t get tougher than this” ...recurring!

Chris Evans used his Radio 2 listeners to ‘bully’ Jeff Lynne out of the shadows back into the limelight. Last Sunday’s performance has shown that Lynne’s powder could be kept dry no longer, with a phenomenal masterclass in songwriting, arranging and assembling a ludicrously talented group of musicians.

No corners cut. No making do. No dancers, no daft robots over the audience or Irish singers in overcast sunglasses talking down to presidents – just a Brummie who wished his parents had moved to Liverpool in the late 1950s so that he could have been part of the FAB 5.

Songs are front and centre and what it’s about for Lynne. Timeless tunes that capture my childhood. What a top job – iPlayer it or red button if you love perfect classy pop music.

BBC, all is forgiven... for now.

Ian Donaghy, Heslington Road, York.